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2d ago

US Halts Livestock Imports from Mexico Over Screwworm Spread

The USDA has implemented a 15-day suspension of live cattle, horse, and bison imports as the parasitic fly spreads within 700 miles of the U.S. border.

Cattle are held in a corral before being exported to the United States through the Jeronimo-Santa Teresa border crossing after U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced an agreement with Mexico on the management of the New World screwworm at the Chihuahua Regional Livestock Union facility, outside Ciudad Juarez, Mexico April 29, 2025. REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez/File Photo
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Cochliomyia hominivorax, the New World Screwworm fly, is a species of parasitic fly that is well known for the way in which its larvae eat living tissue.

Overview

  • Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced the suspension to protect U.S. livestock and food safety, citing the rapid northward spread of New World Screwworm in Mexico.
  • The suspension, effective immediately, will be reviewed monthly until containment benchmarks are met, with ongoing collaboration between U.S. and Mexican authorities.
  • New World Screwworm larvae burrow into living animals, causing severe injuries and fatalities, with the pest last eradicated from the U.S. in 1966 after decades of effort.
  • The USDA stated that prior inspection protocols implemented after lifting a November 2024 ban proved insufficient as the pest advanced to Oaxaca and Veracruz.
  • Mexico’s Agriculture Secretary Julio Berdegué opposed the suspension but expressed confidence in reaching a resolution through continued negotiations.